BELGRADE, Serbia

Kosovo on Saturday postponed local elections in four northern municipalities, which were due later this month, over security concerns, the president said.

President Vjosa Osmani said the decision was taken following political consultations, and the polls will now be held in April 2023.

She said the vote, scheduled for Dec. 18 and 25, was deferred after reports from police and intelligence agencies, and all political representatives agree that "most sacred is the life of our citizens, which should be secured and protected at all costs."

Kosovo, predominantly inhabited by Albanians, broke from Serbia in 1999 and declared independence in 2008. But Serbia has not recognized the independence and sees its former province as a part of its territory.

Tensions between the two flared last month when Kosovo attempted to require ethnic Serbs to change their old car plates that date before 1999.

Serbia's Prime Minister Ana Brnabic on Friday said they were considering return of their troops to Kosovo under UN Resolution 1244, a move which could increase tensions in the Balkans region.

The embassies of France, Germany, Italy, the UK and US, meanwhile, welcomed the postponement, saying this "constructive decision advances efforts to promote a more secure situation in the north which is key for the EU-facilitated Dialogue as the only way forward to achieve a comprehensive agreement on normalised relations between Kosovo and Serbia."